Some of you may remember Tom Hardy as one of the ‘bad boy’ actors from other parts he has played, such as the vicious son Freddie Jackson in Martina Cole’s The Take, a television movie based on Martina’s novel of the same name. He’s also starred in RocknRolla and Inception. Let’s hope Charlize can survive a few months down under with the gung ho Tom!

Charlize recently showed her versatility once again as a fairytale villainess in Snow White & The Huntsman. It’s a grittier take on the oft-told fable, with Charlize as the evil Queen Ravenna, who is determined to track down Snow White (Kristen Stewart) and eat her heart. The actress admits that it was a struggle to strike the right note between panto and realism.

“That is a tricky one in a movie like this,” she said, “But I don’t know how to work without the foundation of reality. So long as you have that as an actor, you can go big and loud.”

Her director Rupert Sanders, described Charlize as a beguiling mix of power and beauty. He called her ‘Margaret Thatcher meets Kate Moss’, a tribute that had the actress in stitches.

Charlize confirmed, “The Oscar was life-changing and it opened a lot of doors. It was an incredible honour but it doesn’t vacuum and it doesn’t wash the dishes.” She is now 36 and has to keep working.

Her nine-year relationship with Irish actor Stuart Townsend may have come to an end in 2010 because he wasn’t ready to be a dad but she wanted to be a mom, so she decided upon single parenthood and adopted a baby boy.

These days, the former model has a nice sideline in endorsements, her coffers swelled by campaigns such as Dior’s J’Adore fragrance and Raymond Weil wrist watches.

She’s also actively involved with PETA, has marched for equal marriage rights and has her own project that funds football fields in South Africa.

During her recent appearance on the Graham Norton Show, she didn’t mention her charities as much as previous guests such as Didier Drogba have done. Charlize comes across as a humble person with a comparatively low-key lifestyle.

“I don’t have a yacht or a private plane,” she said. “As long as I can maintain this life, which is pretty low-maintenance and simple, then you don’t have to worry about all that stuff. I don’t have to take a job to pay a mortgage on a house I can’t afford.” I wish the rest of us living in London could say the same!

There is much to be proud of when you look at where Charlize has come from and where she is going to. We should support her as a ambassador of successful South Africans around the world.